That Halloween
by Loads of Randomness
Summary: It's the 31st of October 1981 and Andromeda is relaxing between trick or treaters when she hears someone apparate outside. Who is it? And was Sirius the only person who knew of his innocence?


**AN: Yes, this is yet another side fic/ one shot that I have come up with for my Falling Series =). The plot bunnies apparently can't stop reproducing. Really I should be focusing on Not There To See Me Fall but that particular plot bunny is fat and lazy =P. This fic happens during the 11th chapter of Like a Falling Star**

Andromeda was catching a few minutes rest between trick or treaters. There was a large mug of her favourite tea boiling in the kitchen and a couple of biscuits stolen from the cupboard. She had handed out sweets to all sorts of children from Princesses to a block of cheese (she didn't want to know the reason behind that one) and muggle versions of witches and centaurs (Though that boy claimed that he was meant too be a horse but his head has a cold).

Something was telling her that something would happen tonight and Andromeda wasn't sure if it was something good or bad. She had learnt long ago to trust her instincts.

She heard a loud crack of apparition outside. Scrambling onto her feet, Andromeda raced silently to the back door and crept around the back garden to the front to see who was there. She or Ted weren't expecting anyone so who could it be? No one good, that was for sure. Her body was shrouded by the shadows from the house so she couldn't be seen. She spied the silhouette of a male stumbling up to the front door and rapping his knuckles against the wood, with a hood covering his head. That wasn't normal Death Eater behaviour…not from the ones she knew of anyway.

Taking a deep breath and drawing her wand Andromeda stepped forward and bravely demanded, "Declare yourself!" in the harshest voice she could muster. Maybe the man wouldn't hear the wild beating of her heart.

The figure whipped around, wand also drawn, to face her. The light of the porch lit up his face. It was Sirius!

Not trusting anyone after her fright Andromeda asked, "What did you do during Narcissa's eleventh Birthday?" No one else knew the culprit of this particular incident.

"I put muggle glue on all her combs," Sirius replied with a quick grin but jabbed his wand at her. "What did you tell Uncle Cygnus when you left the Black Family?"

"I made my choice a long time ago," Andromeda whispered, that one sentence brought so many memories back. She shook her head, trying to rid herself of those moments.

For the first time since she had noticed him, Andromeda took a good look at her cousin. Tears were still leaking down his cheeks, his eyes burned in fury and overall he looked like he was in pain. Giving Sirius a quick once over she knew that it wasn't physical pain, it was a pain deeper than the human flesh.

Her baby cousin had changed from the last time she had seen him six months ago, was it really that long ago? Six months ago he was recounting battles with Death Eaters, crowing over his victories, not letting any deaths get him down. He always told her that life doesn't stop because someone's died and he wasn't going to get left behind.

Now, his eyes were darker, his face more solemn. He now knew what it was like to personally feel a loss. Marlene McKinnon had been slaughtered with her family three months ago. Andromeda felt like Sirius was hiding the old him, so he wasn't vulnerable. War does that to people.

"Siri?"

He shook his head, his curly hair flicking back and forth across his forehead.

"I've done it. It's my fault," he murmured, eyes darting, not fully focusing on her. What had happened to him? Had he been captured?

Andromeda dragged her cousin inside.

"Sirius, you're scaring me," she pleaded.

"I've done it. Lily, James, they'll hate me. Harry!" sobbed Sirius, shoulders heaving.

Not knowing what to do with an emotional Sirius, Andromeda just rubbed his back like she would do with Nymphadora. It seemed to work, Sirius was calming down slowly but surely.

"S-sorry," he apologised, wiping his face with a handkerchief found in his pocket.

"You did nothing wrong," Andromeda told him softly, still holding him close. He was really worrying her, this wasn't like Sirius at all. "Now , what was that all about."

"Wormtail, he betrayed them," said Sirius, standing up and pacing. His grey-blue eyes were like bits of stone, hard and dull.

"Who, Sirius? Tell me."

Sirius made a frustrated gesture with his hands. "The Potters, everyone. He's a bloody rat and it's all my fault!" He was almost shouting again.

"Hush, calm yourself. There's no point in getting worked up over it. You can't do anything if you're not thinking clearly," advised Andromeda.

"He needs to pay, there's no time. I have to go now!" muttered Sirius frantically. "Or he'll disappear. My fault, my fault…"

There was no reasoning with her cousin when he was in one of these moods. He wouldn't listen to her no matter how hard she tried. All she could do now was support him. But what was he talking about?

"Do what you think you need to do, Sirius," Andromeda told him.

He looked up at her. "You believe me, right?" he sounded like a little boy wanting approval.

Andromeda had no clue what he was talking about all this time but nodded. "Yes, I do," she said eventually.

Nodding in grim approval Sirius let himself out. Andromeda followed him to the door.

"Be safe," said Andromeda. For some reason, it felt like she was saying goodbye but she'd definitely see him again. All attacks had been getting less frequent as of late. Maybe things were ending.

"Jamais Pur, Andy," he said in farewell and apparated away with an almost silent 'crack'.

"Jamais Pur," whispered Andromeda into the night.

Who was Wormtail? What had happened to the Potters? Where was Sirius going? Was he going to get himself in some sort of trouble?

A shriek of laughter came from a nearby house. Andromeda straightened up her rumpled clothes and strode quickly inside. She'd need to have that bowl of sweets handy for the next lot of ghouls and ghosties.

Sirius would be alright Andromeda tried to reassure herself. He could stand up for himself, no problem.

Why was she so worried?


End file.
